According to the Croatian Institute of Public Health (HZJZ), medical tests for foreign workers in Croatia are required for third-country nationals from visa-required countries who are coming to Croatia for work for the first time. They must submit a Health and Vaccination Status Certificate (Form 18a) together with their application for their first temporary residence permit.
The form must be no more than 90 days old at the time of submission. All required medical examinations and tests must be completed before travelling to Croatia, in the worker’s country of origin.
Once the form has been correctly completed and certified, the worker must provide it to the employer, who submits it as part of the documentation required for the residence and work permit application.
How is Form 18a completed?
Form 18a must be completed in English. One section is completed and signed by the foreign worker, while the medical section must be completed by a licensed physician.
The document must bear the physician’s signature and official stamp, as well as the stamp of the healthcare institution where it was issued.
The worker enters their personal details and signs a declaration, under legal responsibility, confirming their health status. By signing, the worker declares that they do not suffer from any chronic illness that could affect their health or ability to work.
What medical tests for foreign workers in Croatia are required?
The licensed physician must indicate whether the applicant is receiving treatment for active tuberculosis and record the results of the required medical examinations.
The medical tests for foreign workers in Croatia required under Form 18a include:
- a chest X-ray report no older than three months
- the results of a stool culture and identification of Salmonella Typhi and Salmonella Paratyphi A, B and C, also no older than three months
- vaccination records, including the number of doses received and the date of the most recent vaccination against diphtheria and tetanus, poliomyelitis and measles.
All medical tests for foreign workers in Croatia covered by Form 18a must be completed in the worker’s country of origin before travelling.
Form 18a must be submitted to the Ministry of the Interior
The completed and certified Form 18a must be attached by the employer or other applicant to the documentation submitted to the Croatian Ministry of the Interior as part of the residence and work permit application.
As Form 18a is a mandatory document for a first temporary residence application by a third-country national from a visa-required country, it must be obtained before travelling to Croatia.
Without a properly completed, signed and certified form, the application procedure required for the worker’s entry, residence and employment in Croatia cannot be completed.
Missing medical tests cannot be completed in Croatia
County and city public health institutes, as well as the Croatian Institute of Public Health, do not complete Form 18a after the worker has arrived in Croatia.
Missing medical tests for foreign workers in Croatia cannot be completed later at Croatian public health institutes for the purpose of finalising Form 18a.
Employers and recruitment agencies should therefore verify that all required medical tests for foreign workers in Croatia have been completed and correctly recorded before arranging the worker’s arrival.
If any required medical findings or information are missing, they must be obtained in the worker’s country of origin.
Form 18a is not the same as the medical examination for extending temporary residence
Form 18a should not be confused with the medical examination carried out in Croatia when extending a temporary residence permit, which we covered in New Health Checks and Vaccinations for Foreign Nationals Extending Their Stay in Croatia. These are two separate procedures.
Form 18a is obtained before the worker’s first arrival in Croatia and applies to third-country nationals from visa-required countries applying for their first temporary residence permit for employment.
The medical examination carried out at Croatian public health institutes is a separate procedure for nationals from visa-required countries who are extending their temporary residence permit, provided they have been staying in Croatia for less than three years.
One procedure does not replace the other. Employers and foreign workers should therefore obtain Form 18a in good time and ensure that it has been correctly completed in the worker’s country of origin before arranging travel to Croatia.
